Henderson v. Las Cruces Production Credit Ass'n

435 P.2d 56, 6 Ariz. App. 549, 1967 Ariz. App. LEXIS 629
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arizona
DecidedDecember 14, 1967
Docket1 CA-CIV 482
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 435 P.2d 56 (Henderson v. Las Cruces Production Credit Ass'n) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arizona primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Henderson v. Las Cruces Production Credit Ass'n, 435 P.2d 56, 6 Ariz. App. 549, 1967 Ariz. App. LEXIS 629 (Ark. Ct. App. 1967).

Opinion

*550 STEVENS, Judge,

This appeal involves a contest between a creditor of the seller of real estate by a recorded real estate agreement, the creditor having served a writ of garnishment upon an escrow holder, and a grantee-assignee of the seller. Both claim to be entitled to receive the installment payments thereafter due under the agreement of sale. The identification of the parties and the chronology of events are important.

' The Las Cruces Production Credit Association is a New Mexico Corporation and was the plaintiff in an action filed in the Superior Court for Maricopa County being the action out of which this appeal arose. This party will be referred to as Las Cruces.

Mr. and Mrs. Duke were judgment debtors in a New Mexico judgment wherein Las Cruces was the judgment creditor. They will collectively be referred to as Duke. Duke sold land located in Gila County, Arizona to the Vallees and to the Shumways, who are collectively hereinafter referred to as Vallee-Shumway. The abstract of record and the briefs of the parties in connection with this appeal were served upon Duke and upon Vallee-Shumway. None of these parties to the Superior Court action, all of whom were named in the notice of appeal, have appeared in this Court in relation to this appeal. Although the record discloses that during the progress of the case Mr. Duke died and Mrs. Duke qualified as the executrix of his estate, the names will be carried forward herein merely under the designation of Duke.

The appellee, Transamerica Title Insurance Company, was formerly the Phoenix Title and Trust Company, and will hereinafter be referred to as Transamerica even though portions of the transactions which are vital to the consideration of this opinion occurred during the time that the business of this corporation was transacted under the name of Phoenix Title and Trust Company.

The appellants, Mr. and Mrs. Henderson, will be collectively referred to as Henderson.

Under date of 15 February 1963, Duke as seller and Vallee-Shumway as buyer, executed escrow instructions in the Phoenix office of Transamerica and these instructions were assigned No. 597290. The Phoenix office is located in Maricopa County, Arizona of which Phoenix is the County seat. The escrow related to real property located in Gila County, Arizona of which Globe is the County seat. There Is evidence in the file that Transamerica also maintained an office in Globe, Arizona. Under the same date the same parties entered into a formal written agreement, the agreement and the escrow instructions relating to the same piece of property. The agreement was recorded in the office of the County Recorder of Gila County on 7 March 1963 in Docket 147 beginning at Page 379. The escrow instructions were not recorded. The agreement contains some references to Transamerica, these being in the printed portion of the agreement as distinguished from the typed portion of the agreement. The agreement makes reference to an escrow. The agreement is silent as to the escrow number and it is silent as to the Transamerica office wherein the escrow was established. The escrow instructions incorporate the agreement by reference but the agreement does not purport to incorporate the escrow instructions. The terms of payment in the two documents are not identical in language, the difference not being material in connection with the issues before us.

The agreement recited the consideration. The buyers were to take specified action to secure the relase of three identified recorded mortgages. The agreement did not require that the released documents be submitted to Transamerica. A Transamerica escrow with a number differing from the escrow now in question, was expressly can-celled by the agreement. Reference was made to the Flake-Porter Agreement, an agreement relating to a grazing permit on the premises involved in this transaction, recognizing that certain credits might arise therefrom, these to be handled without reference to the escrow. The agreement *551 'provided that in the event that there were credits arising from the cancellation of the Flake-Porter contract, these could be deducted from the first installment which was to be paid under the agreement which is now before this Court. The printed portion of the agreement contains a fire insurance requirement and we are not advised as to whether the property was improved. If this is an applicable part of the agreement, the requirement specified that the insurance policy be deposited with Transamerica.

In addition to the various obligations imposed upon the respective parties, the agreement recited a cash consideration in the sum of $32,000 with a recitation that $10,000 thereof “has been deposited in escrow by the Buyers to the credit of the Sellers”. In relation to the unpaid balance of $22,000 the agreement specified:

“The Buyers shall pay to the Sellers the sum of Twenty-two Thousand and no/100 Dollars ($22,000.00), without interest, provided the same is paid to the Sellers on or before November 1st, 1964. In the event all is not paid by November 1st, 1964, the Buyers shall then pay to the Sellers the sum of Seven Thousand, Three Hundred and Thirty-three and no/100 Dollars ($7,333.00) to apply against the principal balance, and the remaining unpaid balance shall then commence bearing interest at the rate of six per cent (6%) per annum and shall thereafter be paid one-half (1/2) of principal plus accrued interest, on November 1st, 1965, and the balance of principal, plus accrued interest, on November 1st, 1966.”

It is interesting to note that the escrow instructions provide:

“BALANCE OF_$22,000.00
Evidenced by Agreement for sale Payable as follows: SEE OVER”
“FUTURE PAYMENTS UNDER AGREEMENT FOR SALE . TO BE PAID TO seller herein”

The schedule of payments indicated by the “SEE OVER” reference is silent as to any requirement that the payments be made through Transamerica. The escrow instructions contain an acceleration clause in the event of a transfer of interest by the buyer which clause does not appear in the agreement.

The agreement contained two printed par-' agraphs which are strongly urged upon this Court.

“The Warranty Deed of Seller conveying the herein described property to Buyer, subject to liens, encumbrances, reservations, restrictions and exceptions affecting the title to said property has been delivered in escrow with the Phoenix Title and Trust Company, and shall, as provided by the escrow instructions given to said company, be delivered to Buyer upon fulfullment of Buyer’s obligation to Seller under the terms of this agreement.
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“No transfer or assignment of any rights hereunder shall be made by anyone having an interest herein, unless made in such manner and accompanied by such deeds and other instruments as shall be required by the Phoenix Title and Trust Company, nor until its regular escrow fee and other costs including its charge for the issuance of a new Title Insurance Policy shall have been fully paid, and all instruments deposited in escrow with it.”

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
435 P.2d 56, 6 Ariz. App. 549, 1967 Ariz. App. LEXIS 629, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/henderson-v-las-cruces-production-credit-assn-arizctapp-1967.